Week of June 15th-19th Feudalism is no longer alive and we are now venturing to Ancient China! We are watching some clips from the Discovery Channel: China: From Past to Present and then will be learning about their economy in ancient times versus the present.
Chapter 17: China Develops a New Economy Overview In this lesson, students learn about the growth of China’s economy from the 10th to the 13th centuries. In a Visual Discovery activity, they analyze three images to identify characteristics of agriculture, commerce, and urbanization in China during the time. They then read about and describe the causes and effects of several dramatic changes in China’s economy. Objectives Students will
• explain the agricultural changes that occurred during the Tang and Song periods, including the political conditions and technological discoveries that fueled these changes.
• describe the growth of commerce and the development of a papermoney economy.
• identify the causes of urbanization.
Week of May 18th-22nd We have ventured into the Medieval Times!
Week of March 16-20th Monday and Tuesday: The students are completing the Greek Unit this week by taking a Unit Test on Monday and Tuesday.
The students will also be introduced to the pre-reading/teaching sheets after the test and will be informed that this is work that needs to be completed at home or during study hall. It is homework if they did not finish in class.
Here is a copy of it!
Wednesday-Friday Ch. 33: TheRise of the Roman Republic Overview
In this lesson, students learn how the struggle between patricians and plebeians led to a more democratic government in the Roman Republic. In a two-phase Experiential Exercise, students assume the roles of “Pats” and “Plebs” and negotiate how to work together to complete a mosaic project.
Afterward, they read about how the government of the Roman Republic was reorganized to become more democratic. Then they make connections between what they read and their experience in the activity. Objectives
Students will
• describe the rise of the Roman Republic.
• describe the differences between patricians and plebeians in the Roman Republic.
• list the political rights earned by plebeians in their struggles with patricians.
• explain how the government of the Roman Republic was reorganized to become more democratic. Assessment: · Students will complete Ch. 33 Reading notes. · Students will complete processing activity-Complete the diagram by doing the following:
A. Choose tile colors to represent plebeians and patricians. Glue them into the key.
B. For each part of government shown, glue an appropriate number of each color of tile into the spaces.
C. Beneath your drawing, explain why this form of government kept power balanced between patricians and plebeians. · Students will take a short, multiple choice quiz.
Week of March 9-13th We will be finishing Chapter 31-Greek Influence, reviewing Ch 25, 26, 27, and will be completing a Unit Test. They will be given a study guide to prepare for the unit test.
athens_parthenon1.JPG
The Greece Unit Test will be on Monday, March 16th!
Overview: In this lesson, students learn about the contributions of the Greeks to the modern world. In a Social Studies Skill Builder, they match 11 descriptions of modern arts, government, entertainment, and scientific beliefs and practices with images showing the Greek achievements that made these modern aspects of our lives possible. After matching each image, they read about additional Greek contributions in the respective fields.
olympic1.jpg
Objectives: Students will
• recognize Greek contributions to modern language and literature.
• describe the contributions of important Greek figures in medicine, mathematics, and the sciences.
• identify political practices of our democracy that came from the Greeks.
• describe architectural features of modern buildings that can be traced to the Greeks.
• recognize Greek contributions to modern entertainment and sports Assessment: *Students will complete Ch. 31 processing
*Students will complete a Unit Test on Greece covering Chapters 25, 26, 27, and 31
Week of February 9-13th Chapter 25-Geography and the Settlement of Greece Overview
In this two-phase Experiential Exercise, students first choose settlement sites in a simulated landscape of ancient Greece to understand the influence of geography on settlement and culture. They then explore ways for their settlements to survive. Afterward, students read about the early settlement of Greece in their books and make connections with their experiences. Objectives
Students will
• identify key physiographic features of ancient Greece.
• describe the connections between geography and the development of city-states in the region of the Aegean Sea .
• explain how rivalries among Greek city-states over control of farmland often led to wars.
• describe the patterns of trade and commerce among Greek city-states and within the wider Mediterranean region. Processing: Students will complete Chapter 25 Reading notes.
Chapter 26-The Rise of Democracy (will continue after break-2/23/09) Overview
In this four-phase Experiential Exercise, students use the principles of four forms of government—monarchy, oligarchy, tyranny, and democracy—to select a song to play for the class. After each phase of the activity, students read about that form of government in ancient Greece and make connections with their experiences. Objectives
Students will
• trace the transition from tyranny and oligarchy to early democratic forms of government and back to dictatorship in ancient Greece.
• explain the reasons for the failure of monarchy, oligarchy, and tyranny in ancient Greece.
• state the key differences between Athenian, or direct, democracy and representative democracy. Processing: Students will complete Chapter 26 Reading notes and create a pictoword for each form of government that was practiced in ancient Greece: monarchy, oligarchy, tyranny, and democracy. ---- Week of February 2-6th Introduction:
BrainPop: History of Religion
Discovery Learning: History of Judaism Chapter 11 The Ancient Hebrews and the Origins of Judaism Overview
In this lesson, students complete a Writing for Understanding activity to learn about key figures in the history of the ancient Hebrews and the development of Judaism. Working in small groups, they read about one of four important figures in the history of the ancient Hebrews—Abraham, Moses, David, and Solomon—and design an illustrated scroll page for that figure. They then regroup and teach each other about the figure they researched. Objectives:
Students will:
• identify the Torah as the source of the basic laws of Judaism and a source of information on the history of the Hebrew people.
• explain the significance of the important figures Abraham, Moses, David, and Solomon in the development of Judaism.
• create illustrated scrolls commemorating the achievements of these figures. Processing:
Students join their pages to create illustrated scrolls about the ancient Hebrews.
Students will take a chapter quiz.
Week of January 26-29th
Greetings!
Students will be completing their final assessment of the quarter this week. This is a summation of all of chapters 4-6 in their Ancient World textbooks. This is the Unit 1 Final Project: Cover of a magazine; short story, and trophy. Some students are completing 2 parts instead of all 3, due to differentiation.
Here are the directions. There are variations to this assignment, so please use this as an overview. The entire project is due Thursday, January 30, 2009. Objectives:
Student will: § Evidence should include key features of a city state, development of agricultural techniques, characteristics of civilization, major achievements and achievements of empire’s leaders. § Explain the significance of their chosen civilization. § Identify present-day artifacts that represent the characteristics of civilization. The Ancient World Directions: Pretend that you are a junior staff member or young apprentice at “Dig It!” an archaeological magazine. There was a contest for designing a cover and writing a short story about which group of Mesopotamians that made the most significant impact on history and you have won! You must present your cover and short story during a special dinner in your honor; however, they misplaced the cover and your short story.phy! You must make your own in time!
1. Your cover, short story, and trophy should clearly address this question: Which group of Mesopotamians made the most significant impact on history? 2. You may pick from one of these groups. Circle the group you will choose:
Sumerians Akkadians Babylonians
Assyrians Chaldeans Persians Enrichment: What is Justice? A View from the Cold of Hammurabi
Week of January 20-23th
Happy winter!
This week the students are completing the processing assignment for Chapter 5-finding contemporary artifacts to use as evidence of civilization today. Wednesday we are finishing apter 6 and will then be working for the rest of the quarter on their Unit 1 Final Projects.
Chapter 6-Exploring Four Empires of Mesopotamia Overview
In this lesson, students learn about four empires that ruled Mesopotamia from approximately 2300 to 539 B.C.E. In a Problem Solving Group-work activity, they create “mechanical dioramas” that illustrate major achievements of the Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian, and Neo-Babylonian Empires. They then read about each empire, share their dioramas, and record notes in their Interactive Student Notebooks.
Objectives
Students will:
• identify the locations of the early empires of the Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, and Neo-Babylonians.
• describe the major achievements of the Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian, and Neo-Babylonian Empires.
• identify the achievements of Sargon I, Hammurabi, the Sargonoid kings, and Nebuchadrezzar, including the significance of Hammurabi’s code.
Enrichment: What is Justice? A View from the Cold of Hammurabi Final Assessment:Unit 1 Final Project: Cover of a magazine; short story, and trophy. Some students are completing 2 parts instead of all 3, due to differentiation. This is tentatively due January 28th, 2009.
Week of January 12-16th
The students are finishing their group presentation on the problems and solutions faced by ancient Mesopotamia civilizations, begin Chapter 5 (see below) and will sumer civiliztionbegin working on their Unit 1 Final Project (see below). Chapter 5: Was Ancient Sumer a Civilization? Overview
In this lesson, students first read about characteristics of civilization in a Social Studies Skill Builder. They use their new knowledge to analyze artifacts from ancient Sumer to determine whether ancient Sumer was a civilization. Then, in a Processing assignment, they find contemporary artifacts to use as evidence of civilization today.
Objectives
Students will:
• identify characteristics of civilization.
• analyze artifacts from ancient Sumer and explain how they are examples of the various characteristics of civilization.
• identify modern-day artifacts that are examples of characteristics of civilization. Unit 1 Final Project:
For the final project of the semester, students will create a cover of a magazine, write a short story, and make a trophy for a certain civilization in Mesopotamia. Differentiation is based on process and product in conjunction with the student’s learning level. Some students are required to complete all three projects and some are required to complete two projects. Directions: Pretend that you are a junior staff member or young apprentice at “Dig It!” an archaeological magazine. There was a contest for designing a cover and writing a short story about which group of Mesopotamians that made the most significant impact on history and you have won! You must present your cover and short story during a special dinner in your honor; however, they misplaced the cover and your short story and to make it worse, they forgot to make your trophy! You must make your own in time!
Week of January 5-9th
Welcome back and Happy New Year!
This week we are going to be doing skill building! Mr. Gregory and I have teamed up and are going to be implementing cooperative group learning activities. This will set the students up with the foundation necessary to complete the various activities and lessons that we will be doing from now on in World Studies. The next chapter we will be starting is Chapter 4-The Rise of the Sumerian City-States and within this chapter the students will use the cooperative group learning skills to complete the activities.
Cooperative Learning Topics: Monday:
Good group work vs. Bad group work Tuesday:
Find correct Quote activity Wednesday:
Reading/Jigsaw Activity Thursday and Friday:
We are moving into Unit 1 of World Studies which includes chapter 4, 5, and 6. The students will be assigned a final project that will encompass information and activities from all three chapters. This final project will be due Tuesday, January 27, 2009. I will have more information on this in the coming weeks.
Today and Friday, they will be introduced to their final project and will complete an introduction with Chapter 4, The Rise of Sumerian City-States.
Overview
In this Response Group activity, students learn about and respond to key problems faced by ancient Mesopotamians to understand how Neolithic farming villages evolved into complex Sumerian city-states. Working in groups, students address four issues faced by ancient Mesopotamians—food shortages, uncontrolled water supply, irrigation system maintenance, and attacks by neighboring communities—and then read about how people actually responded to each issue. Students illustrate and label a flowchart of each historical issue they investigate.
Objectives:
Students will
• identify how the physical setting contributed to the development of city-states in Mesopotamia.
• describe the development of agricultural techniques—such as irrigation systems—and other factors that led to the emergence of city-states in
Mesopotamia.
• list the key features of a Sumerian city-state.
Week of December 15-19th
In this lesson for Chapter 4-Hunters to Gatherers, students complete a Writing for Understanding activity to understand what life was like during the Neolithic Age. Students work in pairs to read about five ways in which life changed for people as they moved from hunting and gathering to farming. Students use the information in their Reading Notes to create a comic book highlighting those changes.
The comic book uses the characters of Neolithic Nel and Neolithic Nick to tell the story of life in the Neolithic Age as compared to life in the Paleolithic Age.
Week of December 8-12th
This week we are continuing on with Early Hominids! We will be finishing the act-it-outs and reading activities by Tuesday and will complete their "superhero" hominid posters by Thursday.
Friday we will be looking at Chapter 3-Hunters to Gatherers by completing the following preview activity:
Directions: In the space below, create a cartoon that shows one important way life has changed for people since the invention of one of these items:
computer airplane CD player
In your cartoon, do the following:
• Complete the sentences to explain what life was like before and after the invention of the item you chose.
• Use simple drawings to show what the people in the cartoon are thinking or saying.
In the past…
But today…
This change is important because…
Week of December 1-5th Welcome back!
I hope the holiday weekend treated you well!
The students are finishing their own cave art drawings and will be engaging in a visual discovery activity to learn about early hominids (Chapter 2). They will analyze images containing clues that paleoanthropologists use to study how these various hominids lived and then hypothesize about the capabilities of the hominids where they get to bring the images to life by conducting an act-it-out*. For their final project they will be create a "superhero" poster for one of the hominids they learned about in this chapter!
*Act-it-out: a student is assigned or volunteers to be a character in the image, taking on the body posture and facial expression of that character and answers questions from the audience, as though they are the character brought to life!
We will be learning about: Australopithecus afarensis......Homo habilis...
...Homo erectus... ...Homo sapiens neanderthalensis...
...and Homo sapiens sapiens.
Week of November 24-28th No school!Happy Thanksgiving!
Week of November 17-21st
Students are now entering the era of early hominids.
This week students are learning how social scientists
reconstruct the lives of early hominds by examining the
art and artifacts they left behind in caves.
Students will create a cave and enter the cave to take pictures of what they see inside. Working in pairs, they examine six images of cave paintings and other objects found in or near caves in Europe and South America.
After making their own observations and hypotheses, students read what social scientists say about the images and discuss what those images reveal about early hominids. As a final project, they create and display cave paintings about their own lives.
Week of November 10-14th Students will be making their final neighborhood maps! They have identified and characterized the different types of communities: rural, suburban, urban through real life pictures of the corresponding areas of Minnesota...
...
...as well as short stories, such as " The City Kid" and "The Suburban Kid."
Students also gained a greater understanding of their own community by researching such areas as the population, recreation activities, businesses, and terrain of the current town they live in. I have also added a great photo from Google Earth of the Lionsgate Academy neighborhood!
Week of June 15th-19th
Feudalism is no longer alive and we are now venturing to Ancient China! We are watching some clips from the Discovery Channel: China: From Past to Present and then will be learning about their economy in ancient times versus the present.
Homework: June 15th/16th
Pre-reading Ch. 17
Due June 17th/18th
Chapter 17: China Develops a New Economy
Overview
In this lesson, students learn about the growth of China’s economy from the 10th to the 13th centuries. In a Visual Discovery activity, they analyze three images to identify characteristics of agriculture, commerce, and urbanization in China during the time. They then read about and describe the causes and effects of several dramatic changes in China’s economy.
Objectives
Students will
• explain the agricultural changes that occurred during the Tang and Song periods, including the political conditions and technological discoveries that fueled these changes.
• describe the growth of commerce and the development of a papermoney economy.
• identify the causes of urbanization.
Week of May 18th-22nd
We have ventured into the Medieval Times!
Here are the Ch. 2 Reading Notes
Week of March 16-20th
Monday and Tuesday:
The students are completing the Greek Unit this week by taking a Unit Test on Monday and Tuesday.
The students will also be introduced to the pre-reading/teaching sheets after the test and will be informed that this is work that needs to be completed at home or during study hall. It is homework if they did not finish in class.
Here is a copy of it!
Wednes
Ch. 33: The Rise of the Roman Republic
Overview
In this lesson, students learn how the struggle between patricians and plebeians led to a more democratic government in the Roman Republic. In a two-phase Experiential Exercise, students assume the roles of “Pats” and “Plebs” and negotiate how to work together to complete a mosaic project.
Afterward, they read about how the government of the Roman Republic was reorganized to become more democratic. Then they make connections between what they read and their experience in the activity.
Objectives
Students will
• describe the rise of the Roman Republic.
• describe the differences between patricians and plebeians in the Roman Republic.
• list the political rights earned by plebeians in their struggles with patricians.
• explain how the government of the Roman Republic was reorganized to become more democratic.
Assessment:
· Students will complete Ch. 33 Reading notes.
· Students will complete processing activity-Complete the diagram by doing the following:
A. Choose tile colors to represent plebeians and patricians. Glue them into the key.
B. For each part of government shown, glue an appropriate number of each color of tile into the spaces.
C. Beneath your drawing, explain why this form of government kept power balanced between patricians and plebeians.
· Students will take a short, multiple choice quiz.
Week of March 9-13th
We will be finishing Chapter 31-Greek Influence, reviewing Ch 25, 26, 27, and will be completing a Unit Test. They will be given a study guide to prepare for the unit test.
The Greece Unit Test will be on Monday, March 16th!
Here is the study guide for you to download!
Here is the essay choices for the 9/10th graders
Ch. 31 The Legacy of Ancient Greece
Overview:
In this lesson, students learn about the contributions of the Greeks to the modern world. In a Social Studies Skill Builder, they match 11 descriptions of modern arts, government, entertainment, and scientific beliefs and practices with images showing the Greek achievements that made these modern aspects of our lives possible. After matching each image, they read about additional Greek contributions in the respective fields.
Objectives:
Students will
• recognize Greek contributions to modern language and literature.
• describe the contributions of important Greek figures in medicine, mathematics, and the sciences.
• identify political practices of our democracy that came from the Greeks.
• describe architectural features of modern buildings that can be traced to the Greeks.
• recognize Greek contributions to modern entertainment and sports
Assessment:
*Students will complete Ch. 31 processing
*Students will complete a Unit Test on Greece covering Chapters 25, 26, 27, and 31
Week of February 9-13th
Chapter 25-Geography and the Settlement of Greece
Overview
In this two-phase Experiential Exercise, students first choose settlement sites in a simulated landscape of ancient Greece to understand the influence of geography on settlement and culture. They then explore ways for their settlements to survive. Afterward, students read about the early settlement of Greece in their books and make connections with their experiences.
Objectives
Students will
• identify key physiographic features of ancient Greece.
• describe the connections between geography and the development of city-states in the region of the Aegean Sea .
• explain how rivalries among Greek city-states over control of farmland often led to wars.
• describe the patterns of trade and commerce among Greek city-states and within the wider Mediterranean region.
Processing: Students will complete Chapter 25 Reading notes.
Chapter 26-The Rise of Democracy (will continue after break-2/23/09)
Overview
In this four-phase Experiential Exercise, students use the principles of four forms of government—monarchy, oligarchy, tyranny, and democracy—to select a song to play for the class. After each phase of the activity, students read about that form of government in ancient Greece and make connections with their experiences.
Objectives
Students will
• trace the transition from tyranny and oligarchy to early democratic forms of government and back to dictatorship in ancient Greece.
• explain the reasons for the failure of monarchy, oligarchy, and tyranny in ancient Greece.
• state the key differences between Athenian, or direct, democracy and representative democracy.
Processing: Students will complete Chapter 26 Reading notes and create a pictoword for each form of government that was practiced in ancient Greece: monarchy, oligarchy, tyranny, and democracy.
----
Week of February 2-6th
Introduction:
BrainPop: History of Religion
Discovery Learning: History of Judaism
Chapter 11
The Ancient Hebrews and the Origins of Judaism
Overview
In this lesson, students complete a Writing for Understanding activity to learn about key figures in the history of the ancient Hebrews and the development of Judaism. Working in small groups, they read about one of four important figures in the history of the ancient Hebrews—Abraham, Moses, David, and Solomon—and design an illustrated scroll page for that figure. They then regroup and teach each other about the figure they researched.
Objectives:
Students will:
• identify the Torah as the source of the basic laws of Judaism and a source of information on the history of the Hebrew people.
• explain the significance of the important figures Abraham, Moses, David, and Solomon in the development of Judaism.
• create illustrated scrolls commemorating the achievements of these figures.
Processing:
Students join their pages to create illustrated scrolls about the ancient Hebrews.
Students will take a chapter quiz.
Week of January 26-29th
Greetings!
Students will be completing their final assessment of the quarter this week. This is a summation of all of chapters 4-6 in their Ancient World textbooks. This is the Unit 1 Final Project: Cover of a magazine; short story, and trophy. Some students are completing 2 parts instead of all 3, due to differentiation.
Here are the directions. There are variations to this assignment, so please use this as an overview. The entire project is due Thursday, January 30, 2009.
Objectives:
Student will:
§ Evidence should include key features of a city state, development of agricultural techniques, characteristics of civilization, major achievements and achievements of empire’s leaders.
§ Explain the significance of their chosen civilization.
§ Identify present-day artifacts that represent the characteristics of civilization.
The Ancient World
Directions: Pretend that you are a junior staff member or young apprentice at “Dig It!” an archaeological magazine. There was a contest for designing a cover and writing a short story about which group of Mesopotamians that made the most significant impact on history and you have won! You must present your cover and short story during a special dinner in your honor; however, they misplaced the cover and your short story.phy! You must make your own in time!
1. Your cover, short story, and trophy should clearly address this question:
Which group of Mesopotamians made the most significant impact on history?
2. You may pick from one of these groups. Circle the group you will choose:
Sumerians Akkadians Babylonians
Assyrians Chaldeans Persians
Enrichment: What is Justice? A View from the Cold of Hammurabi
Week of January 20-23th
Happy winter!
This week the students are completing the processing assignment for Chapter 5-finding contemporary artifacts to use as evidence of civilization today. Wednesday we are finishing apter 6 and will then be working for the rest of the quarter on their Unit 1 Final Projects.
Chapter 6-Exploring Four Empires of Mesopotamia
Overview
In this lesson, students learn about four empires that ruled Mesopotamia from approximately 2300 to 539 B.C.E. In a Problem Solving Group-work activity, they create “mechanical dioramas” that illustrate major achieveme nts of the Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian, and Neo-Babylonian Empires. They then read about each empire, share their dioramas, and record notes in their Interactive Student Notebooks.
Objectives
Students will:
• identify the locations of the early empires of the Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians, and Neo-Babylonians.
• describe the major achievements of the Akkadian, Babylonian, Assyrian, and Neo-Babylonian Empires.
• identify the achievements of Sargon I, Hammurabi, the Sargonoid kings, and Nebuchadrezzar, including the significance of Hammurabi’s code.
Enrichment: What is Justice? A View from the Cold of Hammurabi
Final Assessment: Unit 1 Final Project: Cover of a magazine; short story, and trophy. Some students are completing 2 parts instead of all 3, due to differentiation. This is tentatively due January 28th, 2009.
Week of January 12-16th
The students are finishing their group presentation on the problems and solutions faced by ancient Mesopotamia civilizations, begin Chapter 5 (see below) and will sumer civiliztionbegin working on their Unit 1 Final Project (see below).
Chapter 5: Was Ancient Sumer a Civilization?
In this lesson, students first read about characteristics of civilization in a Social Studies Skill Builder. They use their new knowledge to analyze artifacts from ancient Sumer to determine whether ancient Sumer was a civilization. Then, in a Processing assignment, they find contemporary artifacts to use as evidence of civilization today.
Objectives
Students will:
• identify characteristics of civilization.
• analyze artifacts from ancient Sumer and explain how they are examples of the various characteristics of civilization.
• identify modern-day artifacts that are examples of characteristics of civilization.
Unit 1 Final Project:
For the final project of the semester, students will create a cover of a magazine, write a short story, and make a trophy for a certain civilization in Mesopotamia. Differentiation is based on process and product in conjunction with the student’s learning level. Some students are required to complete all three projects and some are required to complete two projects.
Directions: Pretend that you are a junior staff member or young apprentice at “Dig It!” an archaeological magazine. There was a contest for designing a cover and writing a short story about which group of Mesopotamians that made the most significant impact on history and you have won! You must present your cover and short story during a special dinner in your honor; however, they misplaced the cover and your short story and to make it worse, they forgot to make your trophy! You must make your own in time!
Week of January 5-9th
Welcome back and Happy New Year!
This week we are going to be doing skill building! Mr. Gregory and I have teamed up and are going to be implementing cooperative group learning activities. This will set the students up with the foundation necessary to complete the various activities and lessons that we will be doing from now on in World Studies. The next chapter we will be starting is Chapter 4-The Rise of the Sumerian City-States and within this chapter the students will use the cooperative group learning skills to complete the activities.
Cooperative Learning Topics:
Monday:
Good group work vs. Bad group work
Tuesday:
Find correct Quote activity
Wednesday:
Reading/Jigsaw Activity
Thursday and Friday:
We are moving into Unit 1 of World Studies which includes chapter 4, 5, and 6. The students will be assigned a final project that will encompass information and activities from all three chapters. This final project will be due Tuesday, January 27, 2009. I will have more information on this in the coming weeks.
Today and Friday, they will be introduced to their final project and will complete an introduction with Chapter 4, The Rise of Sumerian City-States.
Overview
In this Response Group activity, students learn about and respond to key problems faced by ancient Mesopotamians to understand how Neolithic farming villages evolved into complex Sumerian city-states. Working in groups, students address four issues faced by ancient Mesopotamians—food shortages, uncontrolled water supply, irrigation system maintenance, and attacks by neighboring communities—and then read about how people actually respon
Objectives:
Students will
• identify how the physical setting contributed to the development of city-states in Mesopotamia.
• describe the development of agricultural techniques—such as irrigation systems—and other factors that led to the emergence of city-states in
Mesopotamia.
• list the key features of a Sumerian city-state.
Week of December 15-19th
In this lesson for Chapter 4-Hunters to Gatherers, students complete a Writing for Understanding activity to understand what life was like during the Neolithic Age. Students work in pairs to read about five ways in which life changed for people as they moved from hunting and gathering to farming. Students use the information in their Reading Notes to create a comic book highlighting those changes.
The comic book uses the characters of Neolithic Nel and Neolithic Nick to tell the story of life in the Neolithic Age as compared to life in the Paleolithic Age.
Week of December 8-12th
This week we are continuing on with Early Hominids! We will be finishing the act-it-outs and reading activities by Tuesday and will complete their "superhero" hominid posters by Thursday.
Friday we will be looking at Chapter 3-Hunters to Gatherers by completing the following preview activity:
Directions: In the space below, create a cartoon that shows one important way life has changed for people since the invention of one of these items:
computer airplane CD player
In your cartoon, do the following:
• Complete the sentences to explain what life was like before and after the invention of the item you chose.
• Use simple drawings to show what the people in the cartoon are thinking or saying.
In the past…
But today…
This change is important because…
Week of December 1-5th
Welcome back!
I hope the holiday weekend treated you well!
The students are finishing their own cave art drawings and will be engaging in a visual discovery activity to learn about early hominids (Chapter 2). They will analyze images containing clues that paleoanthropologists use to study how these various hominids lived and then hypothesize about the capabilities of the hominids where they get to bring the images to life by conducting an act-it-out*. For their final project they will be create a "superhero" poster for one of the hominids they learned about in this chapter!
*Act-it-out: a student is assigned or volunteers to be a character in the image, taking on the body posture and facial expression of that character and answers questions from the audience, as though they are the character brought to life!
We will be learning about:
Australopithecus afarensis ...
...Homo erectus...
...and Homo sapiens sapiens.
Week of November 24-28th
Week of November 17-21st
Students are now entering the era of early hominids.
This week students are learning how social scientists
reconstruct the lives of early hominds by examining the
art and artifacts they left behind in caves.
Students will create a cave and enter the cave to take pictures of what they see inside. Working in pairs, they examine six images of cave paintings and other objects found in or near caves in Europe and South America.
After making their own observations and hypotheses, students read what social scientists say about the images and discuss what those images reveal about early hominids. As a final project, they create and display cave paintings about their own lives.
Week of November 10-14th
Students will be making their final neighborhood maps! They have identified and characterized the different types of communities: rural, suburban, urban through real life pictures of the corresponding areas of Minnesota...
...
...as well as short stories, such as " The City Kid" and "The Suburban Kid."
Students also gained a greater understanding of their own community by researching such areas as the population, recreation activities, businesses, and terrain of the current town they live in. I have also added a great photo from Google Earth of the Lionsgate Academy neighborhood!